Éamon Ó Cuív (Galway West, Fianna Fail)
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1578. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government the number of applications under the mortgage to rent scheme that have been completed each year since its introduction; the steps he plans to take to make this option more attractive to persons with unsustainable mortgage arrears; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [15950/18]

Eoghan Murphy (Dublin Bay South, Fine Gael)
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The Housing Agency publishes, on a quarterly basis, detailed statistical information on the operation of the Approved Housing Body (AHB) Mortgage to Rent (MTR) scheme, including the number of completed transactions. This information is available on the Agency's website at the following link:

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Following a Review of the MTR Scheme, published on 8 February 2017, a range of amendments to the eligibility criteria and administration of the MTR scheme came into effect to enable more properties to qualify and to make the scheme more flexible and accessible to borrowers. The Review, which is available at , explored the impediments to participation in the scheme and recommended a number of actions to make the scheme work better for borrowers.  My Department and the Housing Agency are working with all stakeholders to ensure that the actions set out in the Review are being effectively implemented to benefit a greater number of households.  I am providing an additional €5m for the AHB MTR scheme in 2018, which will support at least 250 additional cases to be completed by AHBs working together with lenders using the MTR scheme.

The MTR Review also concluded that the current financial model of the scheme may not, in its current configuration, be capable of delivering the scale of successful cases that could benefit from the scheme over time.  In order to test the operability of alternative funding models for the scheme, the Housing Agency initiated a call for Expressions of Interest from bodies interested in participating in a new MTR pilot scheme.  Two submissions were received by the Housing Agency in response to the Expressions of Interest request.  One of these submissions has been deemed to meet the EOI criteria and the proposer will now participate in the new MTR Pilot Scheme on delivering at least 50 cases in 2018. Discussions are currently on-going with the other entity.  Subject to the successful progress towards delivery of these initial cases under the Pilot Scheme, consideration will be given to delivering further numbers of MTR cases using this alternatively funded long-term lease model.